kitchen

What a year we have all had on this decluttering journey together! Our home are now more functional than ever, we have simplified systems and reduced volume and we no longer have anything in our homes that doesn’t serve a purpose. You are all amazing and we thank you for sharing your stories, your successes and your challenges along the way. After all of that time and effort you have invested in creating a functional and efficient home, how do we go about keeping it that way? Five Simple Tips for Staying Organised Have a home for everything and return everything to its home…….today! OneRead More →

Wow, week 51 of this declutter challenge – your homes must be feeling fabulous and so should you from all of your great work. Decluttering and organising your home is an investment in yourself and your family that keeps paying dividends every day. You are such an expert now that this week’s challenge will probably be a quick one for you because you have such clarity now on how your home needs to function and this will help you making speedy decisions and taking the action required to implement them. It’s time to attack that drawer…you know the one….the dreaded junk drawer! Pull it outRead More →

After clearing the unwanted and out of date foodstuff last week you might have found that you have a number of empty containers hanging around without a home or a function so that is what we will be doing this week. So how do we decide what stays and what goes? This category is full of items that may “come in handy one day” or that have a clear function, but maybe not a purpose right this minute. That can make it more challenging for some in making decisions about whether they stay or go. To help you, consider these things: What’s your limit –Read More →

Time to clear out the pantry friends! Out of date spices, foodstuff, things you don’t like, won’t use – time for it all to go! So how do we decide what stays and what goes? This category could be a simple one if you choose as you can rely on use by and best before dates to get you started. If you need some further assistance to make decisions though, revisit the criteria you created during Week 1 of our challenge to assist you in making decisions and give yourself a limit. If you are new to the challenge, you can see our Week 1Read More →

We are going big this week with our large electrical appliances. For most of us, this is the fridge/s, dishwasher, washing machine, clothes dryer and any other whitegoods or big electricals you have in your home and garage. So how do we decide what stays and what goes? This category could be a simple on, particularly if you have items that are no longer used or fit for purpose. If you need some further assistance to make decisions though, revisit the criteria you created during Week 1 of our challenge to assist you in making decisions. If you are new to the challenge, you canRead More →

You are all amazing at this decluttering – it is so good to hear your stories, we really appreciate you sharing! Because you have come so far in culling the unwanted items, you have probably found that you have emptied out a number of containers and organisers that you used to store your stuff. So how do we decide what stays and what goes? This category could be a simple one if you choose as it is now very clear in Week 41 of the challenge that you no longer have a need for the tubs, organisers, baskets, bins, hanging organisers and other items youRead More →

For a change of pace, let’s get back into the kitchen to check in on all of those small electrical appliances for beating, chopping, blending and whipping up some gourmet delights…..or just those taking up space. So how do we decide what stays and what goes? If you need a refresher, revisit the criteria you created during Week 1 of our challenge to assist you in making decisions about small appliances and give yourself a limit. If you are new to the challenge, you can see our Week 1 post here. To help with the decision making, ask yourself the following: Do I use it?Read More →

Our huge 52 week declutter challenge is underway and features a weekly category with an accompanying blog post providing tips and tools for how to get started, what to do with the keepers and transition options for those items that you decide no longer have a place in your home. Below is a handy summary of the weekly categories for every week of our challenge. The blog link will also be posted here when it is available. You can post questions, discuss challenges and share successes on our Facebook page. Happy decluttering! Week 1: DVDs, Video Tapes and CDs – Ditching the discs WeekRead More →

We are back in the kitchen and this week is one of my challenging areas – tools and equipment (excluding electrical). We have already culled our utensils so this is more about the baking/cookie trays, cake tins, cookie cutters, cake decorating tools and the like. I love cooking and baking, and have lots of tools to help me do it, including an array of cake decorating equipment and cake tins of many shapes and sizes. I may need Jo’s help with this one! So how do we decide what stays and what goes? As always, the criteria you created during Week 1 of our challengeRead More →

Continuing on from last week we are still in the kitchen and it’s time to review all of your coffee and tea cups and drinking glasses (including those for wine and spirits). So how do we decide what stays and what goes? If you need a refresher, revisit the criteria you created during Week 1 of our challenge to assist you in making decisions about your cutlery and kitchen utensils and give yourself a limit. If you are new to the challenge, you can see our Week 1 post here. Consider your lifestyle and ask yourself the following questions: How many people live in yourRead More →

Continuing on from last week with the piles of crockery, serving dishes and platters, we are now moving onto cutlery, kitchen utensils and chopping boards. Don’t worry about BBQ utensils at this stage, we will deal with them in future weeks. Time to pull out that drawer exploding with whisks, tongs and random utensils that seemed like a good idea at the time and pare them back to what you need, what you want, and what you use. So how do we decide what stays and what goes? If you need a refresher, revisit the criteria you created during Week 1 of our challenge toRead More →

After a couple of very challenging weeks focused on your wardrobe, let’s get back into the kitchen and deal with the piles of crockery, serving dishes and platters. I do love to throw a good spread for family and friends and I love to present things nicely but found that I had accumulated many mismatched items over the years, especially in terms of serving dishes and platters and I do like things to go together where possible. I also used to be one of these people who had a dinner set aside for “special occasions” as did my mum, and her mum. So what wouldRead More →

In 1997, I purchased a beautifully hand embroidered tablecloth and matching napkins overseas. It is made of fine white cloth and took a beautiful lady around 100 hours to hand stitch the intricate patterns from her wicker chair high in the mountains of Cyprus. It was made with love and she carefully packaged it up for me to take home. At the time I purchased it for my mum who always hosted our family Christmas lunch. The baton, and the tablecloth, was passed to me about 10 years ago and I truly love hosting Christmas as I love the whole planning process and the cooking.Read More →

I don’t know about you, but it in our house if it can go into the dishwasher it usually does. There are no processions of helpers drying dishes (except for those who are coerced on special occasions) or damp tea towels hanging about. I usually only have one tea towel, one hand towel and a couple of dishcloths and potholders in circulation in an ordinary week and it wouldn’t be unusual if the tea towel remained completely unused during that time. And so the question beckons, do I really need that collection of 20+ tea towels consuming space in my linen cupboard? For me, IRead More →

In the age of Spotify, iTunes and Netflix, so many of us rarely reach for a CD or DVD these days. When was the last time you watched a DVD? For me, I can’t honestly remember, but those movies and TV shows I have collected over time seem to have a hold on me. You know the ones, the classics, the ones that made you laugh or cry, the ones that marked significant milestones in our lives. Boy, they take up a lot of space though, and I have to be honest, it is probably over 5 years since I have put one on. ThereRead More →

The Allsorts household have some exciting news – we are moving! After a challenging year with the devastating loss of my mother-in-law just a couple of months ago, we have revisited our lifestyle and our priorities and decided to downsize from a 4 to a 3 bedroom home. We weren’t ever blessed with children and found that our formal lounge and dining room are only used a handful of times a year as even with guests, they tend to congregate around the kitchen and family room despite my best efforts. We are also not gardeners and looked at it as a chore rather than aRead More →

I did some organising and decluttering of my plastics drawers at home before heading back to work this week (the irony is not lost on me!). I am very fortunate that organising comes relatively easy to me (my biggest personal struggle here is procrastination) so I don’t automatically think about sharing my own organising activities, but I will aim to do more of it this year in the hope that it will provide you with some useful tips and an insight into how I organise my home – which is definitely not a perfect show home! Our home is very loved and lived in! Read More →